Reading recently that Americans are expected to spend $6.9 billion on Halloween this year with $2.6 billion being spent on unhealthy candy and sweets prompted me to scour the internet for some recipes for healthy Halloween treats.
With all the talk about the dangers of sugar and the proposals for a tax on sugary drinks and snacks I was staggered. If you still need to detox sugar from your diet then follow this plan here.
I was even more surprised to learn that Brits will spend around £466 million on Halloween but there has been a drop in the amount spent on confectionary. Maybe due to the fact that half say they won’t even open their doors to trick or treaters.
All the kids in our neighbourhood have grown up now and we don’t get callers these days but when we did I used to hand out healthy sugar free bars or apples. Perhaps that’s why we never got many kids ringing our doorbell!
It’s Halloween apparently when, people who have been following a healthy diet or have just been detoxing, are most likely to be tempted to binge on candy and chocolate. 72 % of both young and old say chocolate is their favorite Halloween treat.
It’s not that hard to find or make healthy Halloween treats. There are many easy recipes for healthy treats on the internet if you look for them.
And if you are a bit of a chocoholic you can still indulge in a healthy chocolate treat from time to time. Dark chocolate with a high cocoa content is quite nutritious and has many health benefits. This does not mean though that more is better!
Here are a few recipes healthy recipes for Halloween treats to start you off. Of course there is nothing to stop you making these at other times too.
Chocolate Almond Butter Bites
by Chocolate Covered Katie.
Makes 8-12 balls
Ingredients
1/4 cup gluten free quick oats
1/4 cup almond butter
1 tbsp raw cacao powder
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup dates, well packed
Pinch Celtic or Himalayan salt
1 tbsp pure water
Handful mini dark chocolate chips, 70 % cocoa,(optional)
Directions
Place the first 5 ingredients in a food processor and process until mixture becomes crumbly.
Add the water and process again.
Stir in some mini chocolate chips if using.
Place mixture to a small bag or bowl and push together to form a big ball.
Remove from the bag and break off pieces and roll into small balls.
Place in some small individual non toxic paper cases.
Wrap in some non toxic parchment paper to hand out.
Note. This is best made with a food processor and not a blender.
Here’s a recipe from Donna Gates for Chocolate Chip Cookies. They are easy to make and even more delicous to eat. The recipe calls for Lakanto, an ideal sugar substitute for baked goods. It’s safe for diabetics and has zero calories!
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
These delicious chocolate chip oatmeal cookies are naturally sweetened with Lakanto, an ideal sugar substitute for baked goods.
It’s safe for diabetics and has zero calories!
Ingredients
1 stick (4 oz/110g) unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup Lakanto
1 tsp natural vanilla flavoring
1 1/2 cup Rice Flour (or gluten free flour of choice)
2 cups gluten free oats
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp Celtic or Himalayan salt
¼ cup boiling water
6 oz raw cacao nibs
Directions
Preheat oven 350 F.( 175 C)
In a medium bowl, beat butter, lakanto, and vanilla flavoring with a wire whisk until light and fluffy.
Add flour & salt; mix well.
Dissolve baking soda in boiling water. Add to the mixture.
Stir in remaining ingredients.
Cool down for 15 min. in a refrigerator.
Scoop the dough, form cookies to a desired size and shape.
Place on a cookie sheet and bake on a middle rack for 10-15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and cool until hardened. Enjoy!
Dreena’s Almond Butter Chocolate Cups
By Dreena
Makes 15–18 cups
Chocolate Base:
1/2 cup non-dairy chocolate chips
2 1/2 tbsp coconut butter
Almond Butter Topping:
2 tbsp coconut butter ( not coconut oil)
1/3 cup natural unsalted almond butter
3 1/2 tbsp coconut sugar
1/4 rounded tsp Celtic or Himalayan salt
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract or 1/4 tsp vanilla bean powder
Line a mini-muffin pan with 15–18 small muffin liners.
To make the chocolate base:
Place a heat-proof bowl over a small pan or double boiler with a few inches of water in it.
Turn heat to medium. Add chocolate chips and coconut butter to the bowl.
Stir until melted and well combined.
Remove from heat, and spoon roughly one tablespoon of chocolate mixture into each liner.
When all done, place muffin pan in the fridge to cool completely.
Reserve saucepan with hot water or double boiler (still with just a small amount of water in it).
To make the almond butter topping:
Add the coconut butter to another small bowl, place over the saucepan/double boiler, and allow it to melt.
If needed, turn on low heat to help melt.
Meanwhile, prepare the almond butter mixture.
In a mini food processor, puree the almond butter, coconut sugar, salt, and vanilla.
Add the melted coconut butter to the almond butter mixture and puree until competely mixed.
To assemble:
Once chocolate cups are chilled and firm, spoon about 11/2 tbsp almond butter mixture on top of each of the chocolate cups.
Gently smooth out the mixture to cover the chocolate.
Place the cups back in the fridge for about an hour until completely chilled.
Well, all these recipes have chocolate in them so here’s one without.
Coconut Quinoa Date Snowballs
by Wendy Polisi
Ingredients
3 tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut
5 ounces pitted dried dates
½ cup cooked quinoa
¼ cup raw almonds
1 tablespoon coconut palm sugar (optional)
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon natural vanilla
⅛ teaspoon Celtic or Himalayan salt
Directions
Place coconut in a shallow dish.
In a food processor combine dates, quinoa, almonds, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and sea salt. Process until smooth. Form into very small balls, about a ½ teaspoon in size.
Roll the balls in the coconut pressing to coat as needed.
And if you are having a party why not treat your guests to a Halloween Green Smoothie! Or simply drink this as part of your detox diet plan.
Pumpkin & Avocado Green Smoothie ( by Trent Golden).
Trent Golden is a former personal trainer who specializes in self-healing and empowerment through natural health and metaphysics. He is the author of “Enlightened Eating,” which chronicles his personal journey from being on eight prescription medications to healing naturally and living pill free.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon raw hemp seeds
1/2 cup organic pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 avocado, peeled and pitted
2 cups fresh baby organic spinach
1 organic banana, peeled
1-2 cups of almond milk or coconut milk (to desired thickness)
Optional: 1/3 cup of full fat organic coconut cream
Directions
Place all ingredients into a high powdered blender and whizz up until very smooth.
Add a pinch or nutmeg if you like and more banana for additional sweetness.
After Halloween 80% of the problem that will blow your willpower and your healthy eating plan is visual. Get unhealthy treats out of sight. Best way to do this? Throw them out!
Fortunately there’s a whole world of healthy treats out there that will satisfy your and your kids’ sweet tooth. It may still be candy, but it’s not made of junk. Will you be handing out healthy Halloween treats this year?
Coconut snowballs image credit
Hey Sandy,
Those recipes are divine. I could actually start really upping my health game by some of the recipes you have supplied. Not just in this post but others.
You got a big giggle from me when I read you gave out sugar free treats or apples. As a kid you would certainly not have been my go to lady for treats, but good on you for really embracing your healthy life style.
The statistics you have shared are rather alarming. And the Brits not opening the doors when the knocks come is just not playing the game, but in this day and age opportunists could be among the knockers.
And I type this last sentence with a heavy heart. I love chocolate and have even gone down the dark chocolate track (but you just can’t eat as much as you can with milk chocolate). OH that’s the point, and its healthy. I get it but sometimes naughty suits me.
Thanks for the recipes.
Rachel.
Hey Rachel,
You’ve got me thinking that I could probably make a recipe book from all the recipes I have put on my blog over the years!
Talk about having a giggle at me giving out sugar free treats and apples at Halloween, there has been a great Halloween cartoon going around on Facebook which made me laugh. There are a number of kids knocking at a door and one says “I have to have dairy free”, another says “sugar free for me”, another says “only gluten free for me” and another says “I’m Paleo”! Not as good as seeing it but you get the idea.
Well, chocolate is something that’s hard to get away from for most people. To get the health benefits of dark chocolate it’s really best to eat raw chocolate. The problem is as you have discovered that it’s hard to eat a lot of it. Raw cacao is quite bitter so that’s why chocolate manufactuers end up adding so much sugar and milk to it. I got given a sample of some raw chocolate sweetened with xylitol a couple of years ago and it was delicious. The only problem was it was very expensive to buy.
Wishing you the best of health even if you are a bit naughty sometimes!
Sandy
Hello Sandy, it has always fascinated me, I mean the Halloween. We don’t celebrate it here in Nigeria so i have always wondered what the fuss is about. But I can relate it with the christmas celebration, where there is a big temptation to eat without limits.
I appreciate the tips you gave for healthy eating. Thanks for writing.
Hello Toby,
I think there are probably quite a lot of places that don’t celebrate Halloween. In fact, I doubt that many people who do celebrate it actually know what it’s all about. For most it’s just an excuse to have a party and binge on candy. You’re right about the big temptations at times like Christmas. So many people set out to stuff themselves. They don’t feel they have had a celebration without a blow out meal!
Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment.
Good health,
Sandy